Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 Plainview – It was a tough Opening Day for the Pioneers as they fell short in both games of today's doubleheader against Tabor College (Kan.) – dropping Game One 15-9 and Game Two by a score of 18-7.
GAME ONE
The Blue Jays jumped all over the Pioneers in the top of the first and utilized the high winds to their advantage by clubbing three home runs as part of a five-run inning. The Pioneers failed to record a hit through the first two innings, and Tabor capitalized on the slow start with eight runs in the top of the third inning to take a commanding 13-0 lead.
The Pioneers began to chip away in the bottom of the third after senior
Riley Watson drove in the first run of the season with an RBI double.
Christian Toledo followed Watson with a two-run bomb to left – the first home run of the season for the Pioneers.
Arcadio Frausto continued the strong inning with an RBI single to make it 13-4 after three innings.
Adonis Bernal drove in the fifth Pioneer run of the game with an RBI double that made it 13-5 at the end of the fourth. After the Blue Jays were sat down 1-2-3 in their half of the fifth,
Delvis Claudio and
Cooper Jauz crushed back-to-back home runs to trim the Pioneer deficit to just six.
The momentum for the Pioneers faded in the top of the 7th after the Blue Jays hit another two-run homer to push their lead to 15-7. Claudio answered back in the bottom of the seventh with his second home run of the game – this one being a two-run homer – to make it 15-9. However, the Pioneers ran out of outs and the comeback fell short, 15-9.
Claudio led the way offensively for the Pioneers with two home runs and three RBIs. Jauz finished 1 for 3 with a home run and two runs scored.
GAME TWO
Tabor's torrid offense continued their trend in the top of the first by scoring five runs, including two home runs. The Pioneers answered back with one run in their half of the first after Frausto drove an RBI double to left center. The Blue Jays pulled away over the next three innings by scoring nine total runs to extend their lead to 14-1.
Frausto continued to carry the Pioneer offense in the bottom of the 5th with a solo shot to left center for his first home run of the season. The Pioneers got back-to-back RBI singles from Bernal and
Sinclair Pimentel to make it 14-4 in the bottom of the 6th. Claudio then struck again for his third home run of the day – this one being a three-run no-doubter to left to make it 14-7. Tabor put the dagger in the Pioneers in the top of the 7th with four more runs to take game two, 18-7.
Claudio led the Pioneers offensively in game two also – going 3 for 4 with a home run, two singles, and three RBIs. Frausto finished 3 for 5 with a home run, a double, and two RBIs. Bernal went 3 for 5 with three singles, a RBI, and a run scored.
Cesar Ibarra had a quality game at the plate – going 2 for 3 with a run scored.
The Pioneers and the Blue Jays will conclude this four-game set with another doubleheader on Saturday, January 25th. First pitch for Game One is scheduled for 12:00 PM. Game Two will begin 30 minutes after the final out in Game One.
